The Problem with Potions
by Lara1221
Summary: ...is that you have partners. It's fourth year and Slughorn is switching things up for James and Lily.


**Disclaimer:** I own nothing!

 **A/N:** I like this one a lot, so much so that that's my whole author's note lol. Written for:

 **qlS4R11: catapults' beater 1:** nojromantic jily piece; optional prompts 3. Radiant and 10. Instinct; **cinema comp 2: hunger games:** write about a partnership

* * *

The Problem with Potions

Lily Evans froze with a start. She looked up at from the notes she has been taking of their meeting and her abruptly stopped quill hovering over the page to see Professor Slughorn. They hadn't had their first Potions class yet this year, but she had wanted to talk to him about possibly tutoring some younger students. She had no idea how the conversation ended up here. She swallowed dryly and rasped out, "I didn't quite catch that, Professor."

Slughorn continued on his merry way as if nothing out of the ordinary had occurred. "I'm going to be pairing you with James Potter. He could benefit from a brain like yours, slick as he is," he chuckled, as if 'slick' James Potter weren't enough to make any sane person sick up.

Lily hated Potter, but more so she hated that seemingly every professor in this bloody school loved him. He was practically heaven to these professors and a bastard to everybody else. One of the primary butts of his childish pranks was her best friend, Severus, and Lily has lost count over the amount of times she's screamed at him until her blood boils.

Potter just gets under her skin like no other. He doesn't care about anyone in the world besides his mates (who also happen to be massive prats), he terrorizes students who are different simply because he can, and he makes it a habit to push and push until people explode because _Potter_ won't explode - he's too slick for that, didn't you hear?

To top it all off, Potter also, by some chance in hell, seems to think that even though he's hurtful, rude, crass, and mean, he _deserves_ the attention of any woman he sets his mind on. For the past two years, that woman has been Lily. He asks her out nearly every week, always gloating about pranks or Quidditch and acting like everybody in the world, Lily included, somehow owes him whatever he wants for being a douche.

No, thank you.

"Professor, you _can't_. He's so horrid to my friends and I. Potter says and does whatever he wants without crime or punishment! And I know he's good because he brags all the time; I don't know how I could possibly be of assistance."

"On the contrary. It is against policy to disclose private information about a student, but James is struggling in my class and I thought you, my most gifted student, to be his best match."

Lily's cheeks burned at the praise, but she wouldn't give up just yet. "What about Severus and I? He'll be all alone. And James...hates me," she tried.

"All of my students are switching partners this semester. I am not closely engaged with the lives of my students, Ms Evans, but I believe no one could hate a young lady as brilliant and radiant as yourself, including Mr Potter."

Lily wished for nothing more than for the floor to open up beneath her and take her away. She tried to be firm. "I won't work with him, Professor. Not with the way he treats me, and not with the way he treats Severus."

"In life, Ms Evans, I'm afraid you'll have to work with people who you do not like. My decision has been made. You will not be the exception the that rule. I will monitor the situation and if you simply cannot stand it, I will adjust my partnerships at half term. You can see yourself out."

Lily trekked all the way back to Gryffindor tower feeling as if she was going to be sick.

* * *

The next day, James Potter waltzed into potions five minutes late to see Lily Evans sitting in Sirius' chair.

Professor Slughorn paused slightly in his lecture to take five points from Gryffindor. James ignored him and slid into his seat, leaning over to whisper harshly to Evans under Slughorn's lecture.

"What are you doing here?" he demanded.

"Slughorn switched all of us up."

"Why did he stick you with me? Need assistance with that stick in your arse?" James teased. She deserved it anyway, walking around like she was Merlin's gift to Hogwarts, and conspiring with slimy Slytherin gits.

A smirk crossed Evans' features as she began to prep ingredients, and James' one non-quidditch instinct told him to stop pushing. "Actually, he told me it's because you're an idiot."

"Right. Do you make it a habit to talk to professors about everyone else in school? Real shocker there. Arse-kisser Evans gossiping with professors about shitty students."

He saw something flash in her eyes and felt a tinge of satisfaction. "I don't kiss arse. I do well in school. There's a difference, Potter. And I'd rather be a kiss-up than a show-off, anyway. You're just making a fool of yourself."

"Have you been watching?" he smirked and Evans clenched her fists. James knew he'd struck a nerve. "Creeping on students seems like something Snivellus would do. Certainly wouldn't surprise me if you're in on it."

"Don't say a bad word about him. He's ten times the man you are," she hissed, her wand shooting sparks involuntarily, and James saw red.

"How can you stand him?!" he demanded, drawing several looks from around the room. "He's friends with bloodthirsty arseholes - literally."

"The only arse here is you, and you won't have me convinced otherwise. Picking on people for being different is exactly what Severus didn't do - he didn't stop being friends with me because I'm Muggleborn, and he doesn't go around throwing what makes people unique in their faces."

James wanted to stop. He really did. But she sat there with that smirk on her face, all bold and certain of her confidence. "He just wants to get in your pants."

Like lightning, she whipped around and slapped him right in the face, charging up to Slughorn with the finished potion and an explanation and raced from the room.

* * *

Slughorn gave James a week of detentions for what he said, but Lily was still furious. She was still made to work with him every class, and every time it was the same: bickering, harsh words, though nothing quite as bad as that first day, no productivity on his part. Two weeks in, they had their first joint assignment.

She was in the library. James was supposed to be here half an hour ago.

As if on cue, he walked in. With clean clothes but wet hair and muddy cheeks, it was probably a Quidditch thing.

How nice of him to grace her with his presence when he's as dirty and stinky as possible.

She said so.

"I came up from Quidditch. Didn't want to be late."

"You're half an hour late."

"Well, trying counts for something."

"Not when you smell like shit."

"Only for you, Evans," he sang, then sat with a towel to quickly dry his arms and hands and pulled out his parchment and text from his rucksack. He looked up when he was done. "So what are we doing?"

Lily was skeptical at the carefree questions. Surely he cared enough to have an opinion and not let her take free reign. They had to pick a potion to brew throughout half-term and hand a completed plan of action and schedule to Slughorn tomorrow in class.

"I wanted to try the Wiggenweld Potion."

"Isn't that above us?" Lily was shocked he new, but he did talk to the older students more than she did.

"Yes, but it would be impressive if we pulled it off."

"But would we get extra points?"

"Maybe, maybe not."

"Then what's the point?"

Lily was growing irritated. "To challenge yourself for once in your sorry life."

James smirked. "Why, thank you. Personally, I wanted to make a antidote. At least that's useful. We could just hand in a bezoar."

"It's _an_ antidote? That's quite the category. You wouldn't even try a specific potion two years above you, you want to make _an antidote_?" she tried to mock.

"Merlin, do you ever get tired of correcting people?"

"It's a simple thing to remember. Starts with a vowel, put a n."

"Or making yourself feel superior by trying everything two grades above you?"

She felt her temperature rise. "I do it to challenge myself."

"No wonder your sister can't stand you."

And then for the second time in two weeks after her entire life without, Lily slapped him. She made to get out of the chair but James pulled on her wrist and stopped her. "What was that for?" he was furious.

"My sister can't stand me. She thinks I'm a freak who turn people into toads," she bit furiously, not knowing why she was confessing to this to James.

And all of a sudden, his grip relaxed and his features softened and he spoke with sincerity to Lily for the very first time.

"I'm sorry."

And then Lily left as fast as her legs could carry her, feeling thoroughly confused on the entire topic of James Potter.


End file.
